


City of Light

by Tarlan



Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Community: fanfic100, Community: mcsheplets, Episode Tag, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-08-10
Updated: 2010-08-10
Packaged: 2017-10-21 04:07:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,172
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/220733
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tarlan/pseuds/Tarlan
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rodney realizes that his own future hangs on whether John will be allowed to stay in Atlantis after disobeying Landry's direct order.</p>
            </blockquote>





	City of Light

**Author's Note:**

> Tag to The Return Part 2.  
> Written for:  
> \- **mcsheplets** prompt #47 Home Improvement  
>  \- **fanfic100** prompt 075. Shattered

Atlantis was a city of light. Above sea level, every room with an outside wall had windows and many of those windows were constructed with the Ancient equivalent of stained glass. Light shone through the abstract designs--casting gold, yellow, orange, green and blue in various combinations across the rooms. Rodney had scientists studying the crystalline structure of the material used for glass, quickly determining that it was the same material used in the construction of the crystal casing of a ZPM. Despite suggestions to the contrary, he wasn't oblivious to its beauty, aware that most every piece--whether used in windows, or in the abstract bubble tubes, the ZPM or in the crystals used to control the Ancient technology--was flawless even after ten thousand years.

Destroying the gate room had seemed criminal, even though Rodney knew the Asuran Replicators would reconstruct the top of the control tower very quickly--though he hoped they would take the raw materials from their ships rather than destroy another part of Atlantis. But it seemed the only way to give them time to rescue General O'Neill and free the city from the Asurans. However, he knew it would never be quite the same as before and once they had recaptured the city, Rodney had stood alone in the center of the gate room, staring through the Stargate to the window beyond. The original would have been shattered into millions of pieces and though the Asurans had rebuilt it, it was different. The design was similar enough to fool most people but the colors were all wrong. The muted tones of the walls had been replaced with deeper blues and greens, changing the whole atmosphere of the room to make it feel slightly more oppressive.

An hour had passed since then, filled with medicals to ensure none of them were infected with nanites, before O'Neill made use of the ZPMs left behind by the Ancients and Asurans to make contact with the SGC. Woolsey had returned to Earth ten minutes earlier but O'Neill had insisted on doing a quick fifteen minutes debriefing through the Stargate before Woolsey left, and Rodney had seen how uncomfortable John had been under Landry's scrutiny. Now Rodney was standing alone on the gate room floor again, this time staring at the event horizon as it cast a rippling blue light across the room. The tone of the room was darker though, hanging heavy over his thoughts.

He felt someone come up to stand beside him and he knew instinctively that it was John.

"Don't you think it's more...oppressive?"

John seemed to give the gate room a critical viewing. "Not really."

"Seriously?"

"Well, maybe a little."

Rodney hummed softly before sighing deeply. Now, with only thirteen minutes until the gate shut down automatically, Rodney was still pondering over why Daniel Jackson had to be present at the SGC end, especially as it gave greater credence to the rumors of him and O'Neill being more than just friends and team mates. Certainly, if Rodney could pick up on Daniel's anxiety and relief that O'Neill was still breathing and in one piece then so could anyone else at Stargate Command. Of course Landry wanted to speak to O'Neill--privately--to decide what they were going to do about John disobeying yet another direct order. If not for the black cloud of uncertainty hanging over John's future then Rodney would have been overjoyed at being back in Atlantis. Now he was wondering what they would do if Landry or O'Neill ordered John back to Earth for reassignment--or kicked him out of the Stargate project, or the military, altogether.

At least Caldwell wasn't in there too, having returned to his ship after the initial debriefing. Rodney had left the others sitting on the main stairs together, not wanting to listen to small talk when so much hung in the balance, including his own future.

Twelve minutes left now.

Despite the heaviness in the air, Atlantis was still Rodney's home, and the thought of leaving her again so soon after reclaiming her back from the Ancients and Asurans was heart-wrenching, especially as those six weeks stuck on Earth had proved that he could barely live without his city. But what he definitely could not live without was John despite what he had said on the phone about not missing him. While they were apart he had called him daily, needing to hear John's soft drawl to ease away the anxiety that seemed to build for the rest of the time he spent alone--and hating those times when John was off-world, leaving him bereft of even that small comfort.

Lonely.

He had been given a huge laboratory and plenty of minions, just like on Atlantis, but he had been lonely even though it had taken weeks just to admit that to himself. Now, as he stood on Atlantis, he fully understood that he had missed more than his people--the ones who had worked and fought alongside him, and in some cases, had died for this city. He had missed the camaraderie of certain people too--Teyla and Ronon, Radek, Carson, Elizabeth, and even Lorne. He had missed the whisper of the city and Ancient technology in the back of his mind, not realizing it was there until it was gone but, most of all, he had missed John. Until they were forced apart, he hadn't been aware that John was everything to him, that like the window in the gate room, losing John again would shatter him into a million pieces.

Ten minutes.

"Sheppard."

Rodney looked back up towards the control room as O'Neill called for John. He guessed they were about to find out what punishment O'Neill and Landry had in store for John. Sharing a worried glance with John, Rodney accepted the squeeze on his shoulder before John double-timed it up the stairs, past Elizabeth and the others to where O'Neill was waiting. The door to Elizabeth's office closed behind him and Rodney deliberately turned his back on all of them and focused back on the event horizon.

Nine minutes.

Eight.

Seven.

Six... the gate shut down, startling Rodney. Silence descended over the gate room but he still couldn't bring himself to turning around. He heard soft footsteps and sensed Teyla coming up beside him. Her small hand rested on his forearm and he turned to her slightly, too afraid to look back up the stairs and see John's face. He wasn't the best at reading people--had never caught the nuances of expression or conversation or body language unless it was blatant. A snarling, angry face he could understand, a hard glare or infectious laughter. Half smiles on otherwise blank faces were...difficult. Teyla read those signs with ease, and so did Elizabeth, but it wasn't just women's intuition because Carson and Daniel understood it too. It wasn't a real science thing either as even Radek and Jeannie had a greater understanding of the hidden language of people. But not him. He had never understood the cues at all until he arrived in Atlantis--until he was forced to interact with the same people day in and day out, living in close proximity and relying upon each other for more than just basic human comfort but for survival too.

"The gate shut down," he grimaced. "Obviously."

"And John is still with us."

"I considered sabotaging the gate if they...but then I'd have to sabotage the Daedalus too."

She smiled at him and drew his head down in the Athosian greeting of friends and loved ones, and he breathed in the warmth of contact as some of the panic receded a little further. He had missed her gentle strength.

"You are a good friend," she murmured softly for his ears only.

They drew apart when he heard the heavier but familiar footfall of boots crossing the gate room floor, coming towards them. John had his best poker face in place as he stepped up, leaving Rodney flickering his eyes across his non-expression in the search of a tell. He barely noticed Teyla leaving them alone together, too caught up in needing to know what would happen now, and the choices he would need to make if Landry had insisted on O'Neill relieving John of command and sending him back to Earth to face a court martial. When John's face softened into a smile--green-hazel eyes lighting up from inside--Rodney sucked in a shaky breath.

"They're letting you stay?"

"They have no plans to replace me as military commander of Atlantis... at this point in time." Rodney sagged in relief but straightened as John gripped his forearm. "O'Neill's told us to stand down for the rest of the night. The Daedalus will watch over us. So how about we check out your quarters?" His eyes flicked over the gate room. "See if the Asurans made any...home improvements there."

Rodney nodded because he knew this particular expression on John's face. He recognized the uncertainty warring with desire and he knew John was asking for them to pick up where they had left off, before the Ancients returned and the reassignments from the SGC came between them. He felt just as nervous, just as uncertain even though he knew only John could ease the deep ache that had filled him since they parted all those weeks earlier. In time the ache would have dulled of its own accord but for now it burned sharp and bright, cracking him open with a desire so intense that he was surprised he wasn't radiating with his need to touch and hold.

Or perhaps he was radiating his needs. Perhaps that was why Teyla had tried to comfort him.

Looking at John, he thought he had a choice to make but he realized that he had already chosen the path of his heart a long time ago; he didn't want to turn back or choose a different path now.

"Why don't we," he replied softly. Perhaps it had all been an emotional projection but he could swear the light from the stained-glass windows became brighter and the gate room became less oppressive.

He let John lead them away from the gate room, and away from the prying eyes of others. Thankfully, little had changed in his room except for the absence of his belongings. Even the bed was as he left it, with the sheets and covers neatly in place as if he had expected to come back--and perhaps he had. He let John slowly undress him and push him down onto the large prescription mattress that he had left behind. He arched up against the strong body lowered over him, running his hands down familiar curves and taut muscles, and gasping softly as John sucked gently on his throat, never enough to leave a mark and yet still so possessive. They rolled onto their sides, face to face, naked skin touching only from hip downwards as their legs entwined. John's hand caressed him from shoulder to thigh, dwelling on the curve of his ass as he pulled them closer together.

Rodney held on just as tight as they welcomed each other home with passionate kisses and the slide of flesh on flesh, grinding against each other. He had missed this so much; missed the warmth of John's body, missed the almost bruising strength of John's arms holding him tight. Rodney came first, gasping his release into John's open-mouthed kisses until their mouths slid apart and he could feel John burying his face against Rodney's throat as he followed Rodney into his own release.

Afterwards they clung on to each other when, usually, they moved apart. The normal pattern of their illicit relationship fell by the wayside when John made no attempt to rise from the bed. He made no sad face at having to sneak away immediately so they didn't raise suspicions, and no warm, damp washcloth was dropped onto the bedside table as a parting gift. Instead John held on tighter, pulling on Rodney until he had Rodney's head pillowed on his shoulder and Rodney's arm draped over his torso while their legs were still entwined. Rodney could feel the rapidly cooling semen growing tacky on his stomach and groin, mingling with John's release and though it should have been the most disgusting feeling, instead it felt amazing.

He slept. He hadn't meant to sleep but the lassitude of heavy, sated limbs, the whisper of Atlantis in the back of his mind, and the steady thump of John's heart beneath him made him feel so safe and whole again after weeks of feeling as if he was slowly falling apart. When he woke up, John was still lying with him, still holding him, and even the uncomfortable itch of dried sweat and semen felt good.

Home. He was truly home at last, and having John stay with him in his bed all night long was the best home improvement of all.

END


End file.
